Chapter 73

The phone showed that Li Yu's surroundings were very noisy. As soon as Li Yu heard that Shan Rao was locked outside and couldn't get in, he knew that it would be useless for him to show up at this moment. He quickly ran to tell Bian Xuedao.

Upon hearing this, Bian Xuedao was about to go to the entrance to pick up the person.

Yang Enqiao, seeing that Bian Xuedao was about to leave, hurriedly stopped him, "Brother, the game is about to start, where are you going?"

"Shan Rao is stuck outside and can't get in, I'm going to pick her up," Bian Xuedao said as he walked.

Yang Enqiao said, "I'll go pick her up, you go back and prepare for the game. I'll definitely bring her in."

At the entrance, Yang Enqiao saw Shan Rao and Guan Shunan through the barrier. With too many people around, he didn't say much and just told Shan Rao to go to the back door under the main stand.

Shan Rao, delighted, took Guan Shunan to the back door. However, the security at the back door was even stricter than at the entrance, as relevant personnel had been notified that the school leaders might invite the Ministry of Education leaders to the main stand to watch the game.

Yang Enqiao thought it would be a piece of cake to bring Shan Rao in, but he was also rebuffed.

The security guards at the door determined that Shan Rao did not belong to the categories of people allowed to use the passage and told her and Guan Shunan to leave quickly.

Yang Enqiao was furious!

If it were just Shan Rao, it wouldn't matter much, as they were classmates and everything could be smoothed over. But seeing that Shan Rao had brought another girl, if they couldn't get in, Shan Rao would lose face, and if she lost face, she might vent her anger on him.

He knew that after scoring a goal, Bian Xuedao had the habit of pointing to Shan Rao to report the score. Today's final match, Wu Tian had arranged a 4-5-1 formation, with Bian Xuedao as the main striker, the entire tactic revolving around him.

If Bian Xuedao found out that his girlfriend couldn't get in and was stopped outside when he was reporting the score, what kind of mood would he be in?

Bian Xuedao was from the Management School and had come to play as a guest player because of Shan Rao. Moreover, the team's main goalkeeper, midfielder, and shadow striker were all found by Bian Xuedao. If Shan Rao couldn't get in and Bian Xuedao got upset, would the game even continue?

Yang Enqiao suppressed his anger, asked Shan Rao to wait a moment, and went back to find the tutor. He found the tutor, who had been helping the team for the past few days, near the coach's bench. Only with the tutor's intervention were Shan Rao and Guan Shunan able to enter the stadium.

Unable to find a place, Yang Enqiao arranged for them to sit in the players' rest area.

There was no opening ceremony, and the game was about to start in a few minutes. Both teams were already on the field.

Guan Shunan didn't expect that her late arrival would cause so much trouble for Shan Rao. But she was more curious about how a college inter-school football match could attract so many spectators. Perhaps the level of play wasn't too bad.

Guan Shunan didn't play football, but she watched a lot of matches and could be considered knowledgeable. Her father was a football fan, and under his influence, she had loved watching football since childhood. She didn't watch domestic leagues, but she watched all the European leagues she could, and if she couldn't watch them, she would watch the post-match highlights. As for the weekly "World Football," she never missed an episode.

After they sat down, Guan Shunan asked Shan Rao, "Which side of the field is your college?"

Shan Rao pointed and said, "The one opposite the 'Eight-Nation Alliance.'"

Guan Shunan then remembered that Shan Rao had told her, "One of the final teams is the international students' team."

Following Shan Rao's finger, Guan Shunan saw Bian Xuedao and realized that he was the striker in the 4-5-1 formation.

The international students' team was in a 4-4-2 formation, with one European forward and one black forward. There were a few East Asian faces in the midfield and defense, probably Japanese or Korean.

All the necessary words had been said at the pre-game meeting. Everyone was doing their own muscle relaxation exercises and glancing at the international students' team's formation.

Before the game started, Wu Tian gathered all the players on the field, they put their hands together, and shouted, "Go!"

This scene was often seen in TV broadcasts, but it was the first time in the "Dongsen Cup." The audience on the Media School side immediately burst into applause.

The international students' team clearly wanted to do the same, but they came from different countries and schools, and the 11 players spoke at least six different native languages. Just before the final, three new players had joined the team, and their familiarity with each other was very poor. The captain thought it was better to avoid trouble and decided against it.

Bian Xuedao and Wu Tian exchanged a glance, seeing the joy in each other's eyes, but their joy didn't last long.

The whistle blew, and the game started!

Xu Zhiyou intercepted the ball in the midfield and passed it to Wu Tian. Wu Tian started down the right wing at high speed, dribbling past the defender and crossing the ball. In front of the small penalty area, Bian Xuedao chested the ball, but was locked by the defender and couldn't turn. He passed the ball back to Duan Qifeng outside the large penalty area. Duan Qifeng took a step to the side and shot directly.

"Oh!!!"

The ball flew past the right post of the goal.

The atmosphere on the field immediately heated up.

The spectators were afraid that the two teams would play defensively to secure the championship, but it was clear that the Media School team was very determined to win.

Wu Tian, running back, clapped for Duan Qifeng, indicating that the shot was good.

The game restarted, and the two teams engaged in fierce battles in the midfield.

Pre-game intelligence suggested that the international students' team had very strong players, and those with slightly inferior physical fitness would be at a disadvantage when facing them. This match was a true test of that.

Only then did everyone realize the foresight of Wu Tian's decision to field two tall and strong defenders. Agile and quick defenders were at a great disadvantage against the tall and strong international students' team. As long as the international students protected the ball on one side of their body, a slight push or lean would leave the defenders with no choice but to foul.

Moreover, from the performance on the field, most of the international students' team had better football fundamentals, better ball control, and better vision.

The 4-5-1 formation, with one more player in the midfield, barely matched the 4-4-2 formation.

The two forwards of the international students' team, the white forward was a goal-scoring type, and the black forward was a speed type. They, along with the midfield, continuously tore apart the Media School team's defense. Except for the first shot, the international students' team dominated the Media School team.

In the first 30 minutes, Cheng Daqi saved four almost certain goals.

Pre-game rumors suggested that the international students' team had two players who had trained in well-known European youth camps. The information was not confirmed, but on the field today, there were indeed players with significantly higher skills. One of them skillfully performed the "Cow's Tail" twice, one of which was against Xu Zhiyou. Another player used a heel pass to dribble past Xu Zhiyou.

When the heel pass appeared, the entire stadium was filled with exclamations of surprise.

Actually, Xu Zhiyou could also perform these moves and was very proficient. Bian Xuedao had seen Xu Zhiyou play these moves many times while walking with them, always keeping the ball at his feet.

However, Xu Zhiyou was still young. No matter how much he practiced, he had only played a few formal matches. In the intense competition and pursuit of the game, he forgot many of his skills and moves.

Only by playing a few formal matches could he truly grow, which was also the reason for Bian Xuedao bringing them onto the field.

Being dribbled past in one-on-one situations was a huge psychological blow to the defender, especially for amateur players whose mental resilience and self-regulation were far inferior to professional players. Suffering such blows at the start of the game could affect their performance for the entire match.

Xu Zhiyou's mood was affected.

Duan Qifeng and Wu Tian tried to talk to him a few times, but it seemed to have little effect. Xu Zhiyou's not only his fighting spirit but also his confidence was destroyed.

In the face of skilled passing and combination play, the Media School team's defense was gradually torn apart.

Wu Tian kept running back and forth, shouting and encouraging the team. Bian Xuedao worked hard, running and weaving in the midfield and attack, hoping to ease the defensive pressure, but it seemed to be in vain.

Finally, at the 38th minute, the international students' team passed a high ball from outside the midfield to the penalty area. The black forward quickly started, breaking through to form a one-on-one with the goalkeeper. After Cheng Daqi made a save, the white forward, number 9, scored a follow-up goal, sending the ball into the top corner of the net.

1:0! The international students' team took the lead.

At the 43rd minute, the international students' team made a long pass from the back, directly finding the white forward. He and the black forward performed a one-two pass, and the black forward's movement drew away two defenders. The white forward then shot, and although Cheng Daqi correctly judged the direction, the ball went into the top left corner.

The score became 2:0.

The 16th player, specifically assigned to defend the white number 9 forward, had let him score two goals right in front of him. He became increasingly tight in his defense, and the number 9 forward gradually became impatient.

At the 45th minute, the Media School team's backline, with no heart to fight, was caught off guard. Bian Xuedao's old acquaintance, Harry, took a corner kick, and the penalty area turned into a chaotic battle. One of the defenders, seeing the ball coming, kicked it away. The ball hit Xu Zhiyou, who was backtracking, and deflected into the net.

An own goal!!!

3:0!

The entire audience let out a collective "Oh."

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